:::This one and the other new stuff in this series are inspired by the works of Steve Chong , Malaysian surrealist and multi-awarded photographer.

Introducing the better, more organized, refreshed: my gallery!

There are some new ones which you might not have seen yet, and ones from old entries which I posted in my mac site. I'm moving everything here so I don't have to maintain two sites. The photos are now categorized into albums for easier navigation. You can click here if you want to see.

:: The photo above was taken just this morning. It took me around an hour to get it done, including makeup and other preparation. There was a bit of discomfort because (1) I didn't have my tripod with me, and (2) the paint smelled really bad. Good thing though the model was very patient, made it easier for me. There are four other photos from this series in my gallery.

And this is the song of one summer
among many beautiful summers,
when the dust rises and dances
and the sky is a blue, distant foliage.

And then she came with the breezes
that rose from the streams and its shells,
she that sang the song of the summer,
the song of dry and aromatic herbs
that rustled, when at my side
I felt her like a land that breathes
and like a dream of pollen and stars
that slide lukewarm on the skin and the hands.

Then she came leaping
amid the breezes and the afternoon, together,
and the first thing I saw was her waving dress
in the distance, in the distance against the pure sky.
But from then on I never again had eyes for her dress.
And I heard nothing else, but the song of the summer.


--Arturo Aurelio, Colombia

My other personality is not entirely dark and repressive. This other one is light, shiny, an advocate of all things bright and wonderful.

tabulas.com/~cebu

There. If you checked the link, you know I've done another blog. I am still struggling with the direction. Blogs can be tough to maintain, but I'll try to keep it consistent and will make sure to get updates every now and then.

I will not abandon Tortured Squid, though I may not be able to upload photos anytime soon. There hasn't been any time to do some shooting lately, and with a lot of stuff going on in the office I feel really guilty taking some time away. (That's also saying my camera is getting rusty, but hell. One day soon, I shall rise again, fawks!)

So take care, amigos. See you.

PODD Corp., Cebu's premier online design company, is turning 2 this year. Come celebrate with us!

If you are a student, Filipino, preferably Cebu based, and creative, here's your chance to win lots of $$$$...

All you have to do is create your own digital art with the theme, Pigs on Parade. Registration started January 8 and will continue til January 19, 2007. If you register early, you will get your kit early and you will have more time to work on your entry. Contestants are allowed up to 2 entries each. Registration fee is P2. Register now!!!

::Please check image below or click here to view contest details.

This drunkenness began in some other tavern.
When I get back around to that place,
I'll be completely sober. Meanwhile,
I'm like a bird from another continent, sitting in this aviary.
The day is coming when I fly off,
but who is it now in my ear who hears my voice?
Who says words with my mouth?




Who looks out with my eyes? What is the soul?
I cannot stop asking.
If I could taste one sip of an answer,
I could break out of this prison for drunks.
I didn't come here of my own accord, and I can't leave that way.
Whoever brought me here, will have to take me home.

by Rumi, "Whoever brought me here, will have to take me home"



::the woman above is amor, one of the models I worked with in the early days. Some people call her rose, and maybe for good reason.

We were softly humming while you paddled, the island sun around us and behind us. Beneath us the soft, gentle dance of the waves that carry us. Whatever their motivation is for doing so, I didn't care. For some reason I couldn't remember you were laughing. You were murmuring something about the politics of relationships, about women and how they are, how special they are--I was listening. at the back of my mind I hated you. I wanted to be the only one. Woman or whatever, but only one.

I talked about how life should be, how the city can benefit from its youth.
I talked about poverty and its many faces,
anarchy that will soon come if this will continue,
the city's left and right, equally crazy over what they all believe in.



We justify our silence by convincing ourselves that like them, we dream too.
But we are selfish. You sing, I do poetry, and we meet in this island to just dream.
Those are our vices. Thinking about it now, I realize I have one other vice: I love,
and rabidly so. I watch myself slowly sink in the days since you passed,
my face red, always from heavy drinking from the night before.
Memory drowns us badly, but there are things that keep me warm always.
The air, my city, our memories. I am fated to live this.




::I've done several projects in the past with shiela, but after the last one, I didn't see her for a long time. She lives in bacolod city, 3 hours by bus from here. A few weeks ago she visited Cebu and txted to tell me she had some time, so we hooked up and decided to do some shots of her. Pardon to those who are expecting some things else. These ones are kinda tame and cuty cuty because we needed them to be so.